DESA News, December 2013

DESA News is an insider's look at the United Nations in the area of economic and social development policy. The newsletter is produced by the Communications and Information Management Service of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs in collaboration with DESA Divisions. DESA News is issued every month.

For more information: http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/newsletter/desanews/index.html

Transcript of "DESA News, December 2013"

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UN Home | UN DESA Home
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
“We need sustainable statistics to support sustainable development”| Opening the door for people of all abilities|
Securing a solid foundation for future development
Global dialogue on development: Calling for Global Public Service Awards nominations, Ensuring financing for sustainable
development, Partnerships and means to implement a sustainable future
Trends and analysis: Exploring best practices in e-government, With a spotlight on the Global Sustainable Development Report,
Renewing commitment for ECOSOC strengthening
Capacity development: Tools for reporting on MDG data, Evaluating census results, Supporting national statistical systems
Publications and websites | Comings and goings | Calendar
have collected billions and billions of development data here [...]
over the last 67-68 years, and this is a real treasure,” he adds.
Feature Articles
“We need sustainable statistics to
support sustainable development”
For almost as long as the UN has existed, development data has
been collected, generating a crucial asset for the international
community. Behind this important effort is UN DESA’s Statistics
Division, led by Stefan Schweinfest. In DESA News, he shares what
it takes to measure an ever changing world and to prepare for
development beyond 2015.
With 24 years of experience working with statistics for the UN,
Mr. Schweinfest has covered many different areas including
national and environmental accounting, statistical capacity
building programmes and indicator frameworks. Since 2002, he
has served as the main coordinator of the Statistical Commission
and he has also been one of the leading forces in the
establishment of the United Nations Initiative on Global
Geospatial Information Management. On 1 April 2013, Stefan
Schweinfest was appointed Acting Director of UN DESA’s
Statistics Division.
Tracking progress of Millennium Development Goals
For the past 13 years, one of the key activities of the division has
been to monitor the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),
adopted in 2000, and to prepare the statistical annex for the
annual MDG report of the Secretary-General.
“The MDGs have been good for statistics. They have
highlighted the need of solid and good information for policy
and decision-making,” says Stefan Schweinfest. He also talks
warmly about the cooperation with the inter-agency expert
group, that brings together “the best statisticians [...] and the best
statistics of the entire UN System”, and how their collaborative
efforts result in the annual MDG report.
W
Watch the interview on YouTube: http://bit.ly/Il6NzW
“Statistics is one of those quiet areas where the United Nations is
actually working very, very well,” says Stefan Schweinfest, as he
speaks with DESA News. “We have a lot to be proud of. I think we
“We definitely [...] have much more information today and
better information today than we had 15 years ago or 13 years
ago. But we should also bear in mind that there are still about
1/3 of the countries that have difficulties producing about half of

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the indicators,” Mr. Schweinfest adds, underlining that there is still
extensive work to be done.
Statisticians need to be involved from start
When speaking about the new post-2015 development agenda that
is being developed, Stefan Schweinfest underscores the need to
have statisticians onboard from the start. “One of the lessons
learned from the last round was that statisticians need to be
involved in the process from the very beginning,” he says.
Mr. Schweinfest points to the Friends of the Chair Group, which
the Statistical Commission created this year and which brings
together about 20 very dedicated countries and their chief
statisticians. The Statistics Division is working closely with them
to develop broader measures of progress needed in the context of
the sustainable development agenda and to also ensure that a solid
measuring framework is part of the new development agenda.
“We are not taking pictures, we are making a movie”
Stefan Schweinfest also talks about the request for a data
revolution, which was put forward in the report released earlier this
year by the High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015
Development Agenda, entitled “A New Global Partnership:
Eradicate Poverty and Transform Economies through Sustainable
Development”.
“I am very pleased with that type of attention given to my
professional area and I understand this to mean that we will have to
make a massive concerted effort to help countries to strengthen
national statistical systems,” he says. His team is now working to
enhance partnerships both within and outside the UN System in
order to be able to support countries around the world. A new
cooperation agreement on statistics has been signed recently with
the World Bank, the International Development Banks and the
IMF.
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
One example is the launch of a new initiative on global
geospatial information management, bringing together the
geospatial community with statisticians. “We believe that this
marriage [...] between geospatial information and statistical
information will create very powerful analytical tools,” explains
Mr. Schweinfest.
Environmental economic accounting is another area developed
by the division and the expert team of the Statistics Division is
now working with countries and regions around the world to
implement this new system. What this offers is the possibility of
jointly analyzing the environment and the economy and their
interaction.
Gender statistics and big data
Mr. Schweinfest also discusses their global gender statistics
programme, where they have been working on indicators on
violence against women and where they have also launched a
new project together with UN Women, called Evidence and Data
for Gender Equality (EDGE).
Yet another area is big data, which is the result of the IT
development and its generation of large quantities of data
elements. Mr. Schweinfest explains that some of these data may
be useful for statistical and monitoring purposes, while others
are not. “But we as statisticians have to look at this new big
reservoir of information,” he says.
Ensuring measuring system for future development
As the new year approaches, Mr. Schweinfest shares some of the
main activities which will take place in 2014. “Clearly the
support of the discussions on the new development agenda will
be our focus in 2014 and 2015 to ensure that the sustainable
development agenda is supported by an adequate and robust
measurement system.”
“In statistics [...] there are no short cuts, there are no quick fixes,”
says Mr. Schweinfest. “What we are trying to measure is
development and so we have to have not only one measurement at
one point in time, but we will have to have measurements at
several points in times, annually, or every three to five years over
the next 15 years.”
The Statistical Commission is also scheduled to convene again
in March, bringing together a large number of countries and
statisticians from across the world. On global geospatial
information management an inter-governmental meeting as well
as a high-level forum in China will also be organized in August
and October respectively.
“I am always saying, we are not taking pictures, we are actually
making a movie, so when we talk about sustainable development,
we also need sustainable statistics to support sustainable
development.”
And in-between these high-level events, Mr. Schweinfest and his
colleagues are engaged in organizing and hosting a wide range
of workshops and capacity-building seminars around the globe
with fellow statisticians participating. When describing the
worldwide collaboration, Stefan Schweinfest refers to his peers
as his “statistical family”, praising their shared value system and
sense of professionalism.
Powerful analytical tools created
“Being innovative is one of the fundamental challenges of our
profession because we are measuring the world and the world
around us is changing continuously in so many areas,” says Stefan
Schweinfest, as he describes some of the new pioneering work of
his division.
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
“Statistics may not sound like the most sexy area to work in.
Actually, when I mention in a dinner conversation, that I am a
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statistician, that’s usually the end of the dinner conversation,” he
says with a smile.
But without the collection and analysis of data, there would be no
solid foundation to build decisions upon and take action from,
benefiting future development. “I would say statistics is as
important an element of a national infrastructure as are roads or
bridges,” concludes Stefan Schweinfest.
For more information:
UN DESA’s Statistics Division
The Millennium Development Goals Report 2013
Statistics and indicators for the post-2015 development era
United Nations Global Geospatial Information Management
“A New Global Partnership: Eradicate Poverty and Transform
Economies through Sustainable Development”
Opening the door for people of all
abilities
The global community took a giant step forward during the Highlevel Meeting on Disability and Development in September to
break down barriers for the more than 1 billion persons living with
some form of disability. With a historic outcome document
adopted, this year’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities
on 3 December, aims to kick-off an action-filled course towards an
inclusive society, embracing all human beings.
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
“All of us suffer when communities are divided; just as all of us
benefit when communities are united,” Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon said as he addressed some 800 representatives that had
gathered at UN Headquarters in New York for the high-level
event in September. “We must remove barriers to equality of
opportunity so that all people can be free from poverty and
discrimination,” he added.
In addition to making physical environments, transportation and
information accessible to everyone, the challenges at hand also
involve removing barriers in attitudes, that fuel stigma and
discrimination. Instead, focus needs to be shifted towards every
person’s ability. This was also something that Daniela Bas,
Director of UN DESA’s Division for Social Policy and
Development, underscored as she spoke in conjunction with this
high-level event.
Tools for action and change
In order to realize an inclusive society where everyone’s rights
are protected and equal opportunities are ensured, the United
Nations is working side by side with governments and civil
society. The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities is both a human right and social development
instrument available to make a difference. Since its entry into
force in 2008, 138 countries have ratified or acceded to the
Convention, and 158 have signed it.
Another important tool for transformation became available
following the High-level Meeting on Disability and
Development in September when a landmark document was
adopted. Entitled “The way forward, a disability-inclusive
development agenda towards 2015 and beyond,” this document
underscores the need for “urgent action” towards the adoption
and implementation of more ambitious disability-inclusive
development strategies.
“To turn these commitments into reality on the ground,
stakeholders must implement more ambitious disabilityinclusive national development strategies and efforts,” said UN
DESA’s Under-Secretary-General Wu Hongbo as he addressed
the meeting. “DESA stands ready to provide cooperation and
partnership to Members States and other stakeholders in the
elaboration, implementation and monitoring of inclusive and
sustainable development policies and programmes, towards 2015
and beyond,” Mr. Wu added.
Watch the interview on YouTube: http://bit.ly/1fQ1Mxo
About 15 per cent of the global population live with some form of
disability, making up the largest and most disadvantaged minority
in the world. 80 per cent are of working age and the majority are
from developing countries. Many of them live in poverty, face
discrimination and are denied opportunities to participate in
development.
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
International Day of Persons with Disabilities: Celebrations and
new UN Accessibility Centre
Every year on 3 December, the International Day of Persons
with Disabilities is commemorated worldwide to promote
awareness and mobilize support on critical issues to ensure that
persons with disabilities are included in society and
development.
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Under the theme “Break Barriers, Open Doors: for an inclusive
society and development for all,” various activities will take place
to underscore the importance of accessibility and inclusion in the
contexts of development. With only two months passed since the
high-level event, the celebrations this year offer an ideal platform
to transfer the outcome document into actions and to mobilise
support to national efforts.
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
This is the vision of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, who in his
concluding remarks to the high-level meeting said, “Let us work
together so everyone, everywhere has the chance to live their
dreams and use the gifts that they have been given. Let us
advance disability-inclusive development, inspire change on the
ground and ensure a life of dignity for all.”
For more information:
The program at UN headquarters in New York will feature
“Messages of Inclusion” to be delivered by Member States, UN
system and civil society, highlighting how the outcome document
can be translated into action. The event will also present a UN
Enable Theatre performance by the Broadway Group “Breaking
through Barriers,” several panel discussions on emerging issues in
the disability-development nexus, and the screening of the
documentary “Gold: You can do more than you think”, telling the
story of three Paralympic athletes from Kenya, Germany and
Australia, who took part in the 2012 London Paralympic Games.
In addition to the commemoration at UN Headquarters, people
from across the world are encouraged to take part in a
Thunderclap, lending their social media channels to show support
for this international day and what it stands for (follow this link to
sign up).
The United Nations Foundation and GivingTuesday.org will also
join the celebrations to promote volunteerism by taking concrete
steps to create enabling environments within communities and
across the world for persons with disabilities. Also, on 4
December, the Secretary-General will inaugurate the new UN
Accessibility Center, created to make the United Nations more
accessible and to facilitate the full participation of persons with
disabilities in the work of the organization.
Embracing the abilities of all people
Recent events provide additional resources to facilitate change
towards a society that includes persons with all kinds of abilities
and disabilities. This was also something that a young speaker
from last year’s celebration expressed a wish for. Addressing the
event on 3 December 2012, 10-year-old Emmanuel Elisha Ford,
blind since birth, urged, “I make an earnest plea and call upon all
of you to look at people with disabilities as differently-abled.”
Determined to achieve his dream of becoming a meteorologist one
day, Emmanuel also encouraged nations across the world to make
the most of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities.
And the international community is moving forward in this
direction. The new landmark outcome document sets the vision
beyond the Millennium Development Goals target date and
underscores the need for disability-inclusive development
strategies in the post-2015 setting. Taking aim at breaking down
barriers and opening up doors, so that every human being can live
their life to the fullest potential.
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
International Day of Persons with Disabilities
Show support of the International Day of Persons with
Disabilities via Thunderclap
United Nations Enable website
High-Level Meeting on Disabilities and Development, 23
September 2013
Video interviews with civil society representatives from HighLevel Meeting on Disabilities and Development, 23 September
2013
Securing a solid foundation for
future development
In preparation for the sustainable development goals and the
post-2015 development agenda, UN DESA is involved in many
different initiatives moving the processes forward. Recent and
upcoming publications released by the department and its
partners, also play an important role in securing a solid point of
departure for future development.
The General Assembly’s Open-Working Group (OWG) on
Sustainable Development Goals continues its work drafting a set
of global objectives that will help set the world on a more
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sustainable path. Organized by UN DESA’s Division for
Sustainable Development, the OWG convened its fifth session on
25-27 November, taking aim at topics including sustained and
inclusive economic growth, macroeconomic policy questions,
infrastructure development and industrialization.
On the side-lines of this event, UN DESA’s Division for
Development Policy and Analysis arranged two special briefings to
highlight recent and new publications that provide the global
community with research, analysis and recommendations that will
help lay a solid foundation for the post-2015 development agenda.
Briefing highlights book on alternative development strategies
“The CDP [United Nations Committee for Development Policy]
has taken upon itself the task to examine and draw lessons from
past experiences so that we can formulate more effective,
comprehensive approaches in identifying durable and equitable
solutions to the development challenges the world confronts
today,” said Ms. Shamshad Akhtar, UN DESA’s Assistant
Secretary-General for Economic Development, on 25 November,
when the new book “Alternative Development Strategies for the
Post-2105 Era”, was launched.
Authored by independent development experts brought together by
ECOSOC’s independent advisory body CDP, and edited by José
Antonio Alonso, Giovanni Andrea Cornia and Rob Vos, this book
argues that new policy approaches are needed to address severe
global development challenges and to avoid the potentially adverse
consequences to livelihoods that are likely to result from existing
strategies.
“No one size fits all, no silver bullets”
The flaws in existing economic policymaking systems became
evident in the aftermath of the global financial crisis of 2008-2009,
which coincided with several other crises, including skyrocketing
and highly volatile world food and energy prices and ongoing
climate change challenges.
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
Assessing options for statistics and indicators
The report “Statistics and indicators for the post-2015
development agenda”, released earlier in the summer by the UN
System Task Team’s Working Group on Monitoring and
Indicators, was presented during a side event on 26 November.
Stefan Schweinfest, Acting Director of UN DESA’s Statistics
Division, joined forces with the lead author of the report Robert
Johnston, to share some of its key findings and
recommendations.
The report assesses options for statistics and indicators in a post2015 setting and provides an analysis of the strengths and
weaknesses of the MDG indicators. It also outlines data
innovations in new critical areas such as inequalities,
governance, sustainability and population.
It considers national capacities for statistics and makes some key
suggestions on how to further foster these when developing a
monitoring framework for the post-2015 agenda. The intention is
to provide early inputs into the discussion; so that once all goals
and thematic areas have been put in place by UN member States,
there will be some common ground for the identification of
monitoring indicators and data sources.
Gathering knowledge and research findings, these publications
provide important inputs as Member States, Major Groups and
other stakeholders collaborate in the quest of mapping out the
development beyond 2015 and towards the future we want.
For more information:
Briefing on the new book “Alternative Development Strategies
for the Post-2015 Era”
Briefing on the report “Statistics and indicators for the post-2015
development agenda”
In her address, Ms. Akhtar noted that the book provides some
important answers to current challenges. “We need to learn from
successful national experiences. There is no one size fits all, no
silver bullets. However, there are some common elements among
those successful policies which provide important lessons for us in
formulating an alternative development strategy,” she said.
Giving praise to its rich analysis, Ms. Akhtar also highlighted how
the “book stresses that a more cooperative, inclusive and effective
international governance system needs to be designed based on the
principle of ‘common-but-differentiated responsibilities’” and how
the post-2015 development era “should take into account the
interdependence among global goals and ensure coherence
between these goals and those established at the local, national and
regional levels.”
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
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Global Dialogue on
Development
Calling for Global Public Service
Awards nominations
The United Nations is
calling for nominations for
the UN Public Service
Awards 2014. This is an
international contest
designed to promote and
support innovations in
public service delivery
worldwide. The award is
open to public
organizations of all kinds, including Governments and publicprivate partnerships that are involved in delivering services to
citizens around the globe.
An annual United Nations event, the 2014 Public Service Awards,
which will be held in Seoul, Republic of Korea will be bestowed
on those public institutions that have distinguished themselves in
the following categories: Improving the Delivery of Public
Services; Fostering Participation in Policy-making Decisions
through Innovative Mechanisms; Promoting Whole-ofGovernment Approaches in the Information Age and Promoting
Gender-Responsive Delivery of Public Services. The award
highlights cutting edge innovations and recognizes that democracy
and successful governance are built on a competent civil service.
“The United Nations has long recognized the importance of good
governance and efficient public administration. Current global
consultations on the post-2015 agenda have further underscored
their centrality to all development objectives. United Nations
Public Service Day encourages countries to celebrate the
contribution of public servants to society’s progress,” said
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in his message for the 2013
United Nations Public Service Day.
The day was established by the Economic and Social Council in
2003 to promote better delivery of services by governments and to
encourage excellence in the public service. As Mr. Wu Hongbo,
Under-Secretary-General of UN DESA, emphasized during the
2013 United Nations Public Service Awards ceremony held in
Manama, Bahrain, “With limited resources and mounting
challenges facing Governments in the delivery of public services,
today’s innovative winners inspire us to work harder to address
public service challenges”.
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
The global event is organized by UN DESA’s Division of Public
Administration and Development Management (DPADM) in
partnership with the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality
and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women).
While contenders cannot nominate themselves, interested
institutions deemed to have designed and implemented
innovations in any one of the prize categories can have their
name put forward by Governments or civil society organizations.
Nominations must be made online here from 18 September 2013
until 18 December 2013.
For background information about the UN Public Service
Awards and past winners. All winning cases of the United
Nations Public Service Awards (UNPSA) are available as iPad
and iPhone applications It can be downloaded for free and as an
eBook.
Ensuring financing for sustainable
development
The Intergovernmental
Committee of Experts on
Sustainable Development
Financing will hold its
second session on 2-6
December at UN
Headquarters in New
York.
At the Rio+20
Conference, UN Member States recognized the need for
significant mobilization of resources and the effective use of
financing, to support developing countries in their efforts to
promote sustainable development. Subsequently, the
Intergovernmental Committee of Experts on Sustainable
Development Financing was created to look into these and
related matters.
Following its first session held at the end of August, time has
now come for the Committee’s second session. And as this is a
committee of experts, the session will be closed. However, in
order to fulfill the mandate from Rio+20 to consult with a
variety of stakeholders, an open interactive multi-stakeholder
dialogue will take place on Thursday 5 December 2013.
The interactive dialogue will be divided into two parts. From 10
a.m. to 11 a.m. the Co-chairs will brief on the work of the
Committee, followed by questions and answers from the floor.
From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. a panel composed of four representatives
from NGOs, business and industry sectors and other Major
Groups engaged in the Rio+20 Conference and the Financing for
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Development process will give presentations, followed by an open
discussion with the audience.
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
Partnerships and means to
implement a sustainable future
More information can be found on the Sustainable Development
Knowledge Platform.
The sixth session of the
Open Working Group on
Sustainable Development
Goals will take place on
9-13 December at UN
Headquarters in New
York.
Conference puts focus on rural
energy access
In collaboration with
Sustainable Energy for All,
UN-Energy and the
Economic Commission for
Africa and UN DESA’s
Division for Sustainable
Development, a Global
Conference on Rural
Energy Access will be
organized on 4-6 December
in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, focusing on a nexus approach to
sustainable development and poverty eradication.
The main objective of the event is to strengthen capacities on
policy, technical, and entrepreneurial approaches to rural energy
access for eradicating poverty and promoting sustainable
development in rural communities.
More specifically, the Conference will aim to promote dialogue
among practitioners, experts, donors and policy-makers to
facilitate closer cooperation on rural energy access. It will seek to
assess potential integrated policy options to address rural energy
and to identify synergies that can be realized from the links
between energy and other development factors including health,
education, economic growth, gender, water and food security.
A further objective of the Conference is to encourage a discussion
on ways to apply models and practices to allow the scaling up of
the use of clean cook stoves and stand-alone renewable energy
systems. Participants will aim to identify best practices and lessons
learned on sharing international and country-level experiences in
rural energy-access development. Furthermore, the Conference is
to assist participants in identifying relevant renewable energy
products, systems and services for rural communities and support
the Rio+20 follow-up process and the post-2015 development
agenda.
The first two days will be
dedicated to discussing
means of implementation (science and technology, knowledgesharing and capacity building) and global partnership for
achieving sustainable development. Days three and four will be
devoted to deliberating the needs of countries in special
situations, African countries, Least Developed Countries,
Landlocked Developing Countries, and Small Island Developing
States, as well as specific challenges facing the middle-income
countries. The final day will focus on human rights, the right to
development, and global governance.
The issues will be explored through an interactive dialogue
which will include keynote speeches and panel discussions.
Issues briefs produced by the UN System Technical Support
team, as well as the draft programme and further information,
can be found on the Sustainable Development Knowledge
Platform (SDKP) (see link below).
Involvement of Major Groups and other Stakeholders in the
Open Working Group process has been central from the
beginning, and there are a number of ways for them to engage.
Representatives from the Major Groups will attend the session as
official observers, and the Co-chairs will meet with Major
Groups and other Stakeholders from 9 am to 10am each of the
five mornings of the session. Input can also be provided via the
Thematic Clusters on the SDKP.
For more information:
Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform (SDKP)
The Conference will also host a technology exhibition, at which 30
organisations are planning to showcase their equipment, products
and services related to rural energy access.
For more information: Global Conference on Rural Energy Access:
A Nexus Approach to Sustainable Development and Poverty
Eradication
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
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December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
Exploring best practices in egovernment
on 3-5 December, 2013 at UNESCWA Technology Center in
Amman with over 60 participants expected to attend. The
International Workshop will explore achievements and
challenges faced by Arab countries in designing and
implementing e-government best practices as they relate to the
role of institutions and leaders, identify leadership capacity
building needs and develop partnership for capacity building in
the region.
The International
Workshop on eGovernment Best Practices
to be hosted by the
Jordanian Ministry of ICT
and jointly organized by
UN DESA and UNESCWA
will aim to provide a
platform for senior level
official from Arab region
and across the world to disseminate best practices and discuss
trends, achievement and challenges in implementing e-government
initiatives. The event will take place in Amman, Jordan on 3-5
December.
It will run for three days and include 16 working sessions aiming
at building capacities of funded and non-funded participants on
the mechanisms to design, implement and ensure sustainability
of online public service delivery through the exchange of ideas,
experiences and best practices amongst and between Arab
countries and other regions of the world. The end goal is to
improve public service delivery, achieve the increased
understanding and technical capacities of decision makers on the
improvements in institutional framework needed to increase the
level of e-government readiness. It will do so through the
facilitation of an active dialogue between UN DESA,
UNESCWA, invited experts, high level officials, representatives
of international organizations, the business community and other
stakeholders.
Information and Communication technologies have had a
significant impact on modernization of public administration and
governance. Government electronic services have been developed
not only to simplify government procedures and improve
interaction with citizens, but also to create new governance models
that would empower citizens and involve them in the decisionmaking process as well as increase transparency and accountability
of governance.
For more information on e-Government, visit the website of
DESA’s Division Division for Public Administration and
Development Management.
Trends and Analysis
Arab countries have all realized the importance of a wellconceived e-government strategy and have launched national egovernment initiatives. They have placed a high priority on the
development of e-government programs and mobilized human and
financial resources for their implementation. In some Arab
countries, the focus of e-government initiatives has shifted from
the provision of services through one-stop-shop portals to more
advanced concepts such as open data initiatives.
Recognizing the important role of UN DESA in advancing egovernment agendas at the global and regional levels and building
upon a successful cooperation on the organization of the UN
Workshop on “Promoting Governance through Innovation and
ICT” during the UNPSA 2013 in Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain,
the ICT Division of the UN Economic Commission for Western
Asia (UNESCWA) requested the cooperation of eGB/DPADM/UN
DESA to jointly organize this “International Workshop in
Promoting e-Government Best Practices”.
The event will be hosted by the Jordanian Ministry of ICT and
organized jointly by UN DESA and UNESCWA. It will take place
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
With a spotlight on the Global
Sustainable Development Report
The “Expert Group
Meeting for the Global
Sustainable
Development Report
2013 – Engaging
National Assessments”
will take place from 12
to 13 December in
Beijing. It is cosponsored by UN DESA and the Ministry of Science and
Technology of the People’s Republic of China.
The meeting will open with statements by Under-SecretaryGeneral Wu-Hongbo and the host country’s Vice Minister of
Science and Technology, among others.
One of the functions of the High Level Political Forum on
sustainable development (HLPF), which was inaugurated on 24
September 2013, is to strengthen the science-policy interface.
This is to be done, among other things, by bringing together
dispersed information and assessments, including in the form of
a global sustainable development report, building on existing
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assessments, and enhancing evidence-based decision-making at all
levels.
The Expert Group Meeting is intended to contribute to the work of
the HLPF on the above issues. It will bring together leading
scientists and experts involved in preparing national reports or
related sustainable development assessments, in order to ensure
that their research findings and analytical perspectives will be
featured in the Global Sustainable Development Report. The
modality of future collaboration among the experts will also be
discussed during the meeting.
Further information can be found on the Sustainable Development
Knowledge Platform.
Renewing commitment for ECOSOC
strengthening
The 2013 ECOSOC
Presidential Expert
Meeting took place on 1516 November at the
Greentree Foundation in
Manhasset, New York. The
theme of the event was
“The ECOSOC We Want:
Renewing commitment,
confronting new
challenges”. The Meeting was convened by H.E. Néstor Osorio,
President of ECOSOC, and organized by UN DESA’s Office for
ECOSOC Support and Coordination.
The event brought together over 60 participants, including former
ECOSOC Presidents, the current ECOSOC Bureau, Permanent
Representatives, other representatives from Member States and
experts, to discuss the way forward for ECOSOC after the
adoption by the General Assembly of resolutions 67/290 on the
High-level Political Forum and 68/1 on strengthening ECOSOC.
The opening session was devoted to defining the pressing
development challenges to sustainable development in the social,
economic and environment areas that would need to address, such
as geo-political and geo-economic shifts, climate change, youth,
women, the communications revolution, urbanization and
migration, science and technology and inequality.
A number of key messages emerged from the four separate
working groups:
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
stakeholders, and that could attract participation from country
capitals. The Council’s working methods and proceedings
should therefore also be opened to include national stakeholders
and move away from the current model that limits the
participation of private sector, the scientific community,
parliamentarians and civil society organizations.
Enhancing the integration of the three dimensions of
sustainable development
Emphasis was placed on the critical role the newly created
integration segment of the Council is to play in bringing better
understanding on how daunting challenges can be addressed
from all the three dimensions of sustainable development and
making concrete recommendations for action. In this connection,
the role of all stakeholders, including ECOSOC’s subsidiary
bodies should be augmented. The two transition years of 20142015 represent an opportunity to gather experience that will be
relevant for the post-2015 architecture and implementation.
Strengthening the links between normative and operational
activities
There was a broad agreement that the operational activities role
of ECOSOC should go beyond its conventional role by
enhancing dialogue on issues of system-wide concerns such as
the responsiveness of the United Nations Development
Assistance Frameworks (UNDAFs), national ownership,
effective utilization of funds and the functioning of the Resident
Coordinator system. Participants stressed that ECOSOC could
also provide space for dialogue on overall guidance of
operational activities and thus give voice to Member States that
may have difficulties effectively influencing discussions at the
governing body level, and/or in regional groups.
Enhancing the Council’s monitoring capacity to promote
greater accountability
Monitoring and accountability mechanisms for the post-2015
development agenda should be built into the design of the new
development framework. They should engage a wide range of
stakeholders, especially parliaments, in order to better link
global to national accountability. Broad-based participation will
also be critical in defining the scope of such accountability – for
what and to whom – both at the global and national levels.
National reviews should continue to be carried out in the
medium and long term to allow sufficient time to measure and
monitor implementation.
The way forward
Furthering engagements with national stakeholders
Discussions underlined that ECOSOC has to play a leading role in
choosing relevant and attractive topics to a broad range of
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
The new institutional architecture for this vision built on the
Council, the General Assembly and the high-level political
forum, all acting in unison, offers a historical opportunity. It is
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imperative to bring to them the relevant policymakers and experts
so that their outcomes can become more effective. Working
through the transition in 2014-2015, as the transformative
development agenda beyond 2015 is finalized, requires moving
beyond the process – to action and implementation. Systems can
be modified as necessary to ensure that they remain fit and
effective.
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
will also discuss knowledge management aspects on how to
leapfrog advancements in e-Government development to
modernize government in terms of effectiveness, efficiency,
transparency and inclusiveness. A series of countries already
confirmed their presence and support to E-xperience, including
Azerbaijan, Brazil, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Egypt, El Salvador,
Guatemala, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru,
among others.
For more information on the work of the Economic and Social
Council (ECOSOC), browse the Council’s website.
For more information: E-xperience Conference in Bogotá
Centre for Innovation on eGovernment Development launched
Knowledge-sharing on UN eGovernment Development Index
New e-Government
platforms and networks are
dramatically changing the
decision-making systems,
business models and public
service delivery
mechanisms in both
developed and developing
countries. All this growing
demand for ICT goods and
services in the public and private sectors can potentially leverage
the consolidation of improved governance, thus becoming the
backbone of sustainable development through efficient public
administration. On 26-27 November, the E-xperience Conference
was held in Bogotá, Colombia, also featuring the launch of the
Centre for Innovation on e-Government Development.
Following Russia ICT
Day, organized by the
World Bank in
cooperation with Russia
in Washington DC, a
delegation of 42 highlevel officials from the
Russian Federation
visited UN DESA’s
Division for Public
Administration and Development Management (DPADM) on 15
November, for a presentation on the United Nations eGovernment Development Index (EGDI).
The Ministry of Information and Communication Technologies of
Colombia (MINTIC) has signed a Project Document with UNDP,
having the e-Government Branch, Division for Public
Administration and Development Management of UN DESA
providing substantive support and implementing over 70% of all
activities. The Project is the result of a specific request from the
Colombian Government to UN DESA, having a budget of more
than US$ 800,000 a year provided by Colombia.
The Project has been designed to benefit other countries in the
region and globally, based on the principles created and
disseminated by the UN e-Government Survey prepared by UN
DESA. It also represents a new reference for innovative
cooperation between Colombia, UN DESA and UNDP, having
benefitted from significant constructive support from the UN
Office of Legal Affairs (OLA) and the Capacity Development
Office (CDO) of UN DESA.
The first major output of this partnership was the E-xperience
Conference held in Bogotá on 26-27 November. The Conference
launched the Centre for Innovation on e-Government
Development, a pioneer initiative on a global scale. E-xperience
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
The Russian Federation has made significant progress in egovernment development since 2010, both in absolute terms and
relative to other countries, with a notable jump in its global
ranking between 2010 (59th place) and 2012 (27th place). The
gain can be attributed to: (a) a doubling in availability of
government e-services; and (b) an increase in the number of
Internet users (from 21% to 43% of the population) and fixed
broadband subscriptions (from 3% to 11% of the population).
According to the World Bank, Russia has 76 million Internet
users and an e-commerce turnover of $13 billion a year. The
country’s e-government performance has reached the EU
average, despite the challenges of a large population and vast
geography. Its ICT industry boasts world-leading brands in the
IT sector, fuelled by over 60,000 graduates in Science,
Engineering and Mathematics each year.
To some extent, Russia has struggled with e-government
development. The “Electronic Russia” programme (2002-2012)
was an ambitious 9-year effort deemed by some observers to
have been unsuccessful. Currently, Russia is pursuing an
“Information Society State Programme” (2011-2020) with the
aim of providing Russians with enhanced access to broadband
Internet, developing the ICT sector, promoting Internet safety,
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December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
and simplifying interaction between citizens and the State through
e-government.
DPADM gave several presentations on the 2014 e-Government
Survey, Capacity Development, Open Government Data, Public
Service Awards and Forum, and Innovation Transfer followed by
Q& As on the ways to improve e-Government performance on
federal and local levels in the country and bring the benefits of the
information society to all citizens.
Within the margins of the visit, Thomas Gass, DESA’s Assistant
Secretary-General for Policy Coordination and Inter-Agency
Affairs, met with the Minister of Communications and Mass Media
of the Russian Federation, Mr. Nikolai Nikiforov, Permanent
Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations,
Mr. Vitaly Churkin and other high level officials and DPADM
staff members.
Discussions were held on the future cooperation of UN DESA and
Russian Government in the field of ICT and its use to enhance
service delivery for public administration. It was agreed that
Russian Government will invite DPADM Advisors to assess eGovernment performance and provide guidance and
recommendations on how the Government can overall improve
public service delivery, bridge the digital divide, implement wholeof-government approach, greater use of social media and open
government.
For more information: Website of DPADM
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December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
Capacity development
indirect demographic techniques necessary for the evaluation of
census results.
Tools for reporting on MDG data
Participants will learn, in particular, the methods to evaluate agesex structure of population, fertility as well as mortality data
obtained from national population and housing censuses. They
are also expected to establish own professional networks through
exchange of experiences and knowledge on census data
analyses.
UN DESA’s Statistics
Division together with the
United Nations Economic
and Social Commission for
Western Asia (UN ESCWA)
is organizing a Training
Workshop on SDMX tools
for MDG Data Reporting
on 2-5 December in
Casablanca, Morocco.
Statistical Data and Metadata eXchange (SDMX) is the preferred
standard for allowing National Statistical Offices (NSOs) to
automate and standardize exchange of data and metadata
associated with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The workshop will provide participants with an introduction to
SDMX and focus on the process of mapping and exchanging
indicators with SDMX through the features added to DevInfo 7.
Published by UN DESA’s Statistics Division, DevInfo is a
powerful database system for monitoring human development. It
is a tool for organizing, storing and presenting data in a uniform
way to facilitate data sharing at the country level across
government departments, UN agencies and development partners.
DevInfo has features that produce tables, graphs and maps for
inclusion in reports, presentations and advocacy materials.
For more information:
UN DESA’s Statistics Division
DevInfo 7
Evaluating census results
UN DESA’s Statistics
Division will conduct a
Workshop on Census
Evaluation, in
collaboration with General
Statistics Office of Viet
Nam, in Hanoi, Viet Nam,
on 2-6 December.
The regional workshop will
bring together some fifteen national statisticians from eight Asian
countries. The main purpose of the workshop is to provide the staff
of national statistical offices with hands-on training to master
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
UN DESA’s Statistics Division is the primary agency
responsible at the international level for (1) collecting official
national demographic including statistics on population size and
structure, fertility, mortality and international migration; (2)
publishing internationally agreed standards and guidelines on
collecting, compiling and disseminating demographic statistics
and (3) providing technical assistance to national statistical
offices on topics related to the improvement of demographic
statistics.
The division also publishes the Demographic Yearbook which
collects, compiles and disseminates official statistics on a wide
range of topics. Data have been collected from national
statistical authorities since 1948 through a set of questionnaires
dispatched annually by UN DESA’s Statistics Division to over
230 national statistical offices.
For more information: UN DESA’s Statistics Division
Engaging citizens through eparticipation
The National Capacity
Building Workshop on
Developing Capacity for
e-Participation:
Engaging Citizens in
Development Policy and
Decision-making
Processes through
Information
Communication
Technologies (ICTs) will take place in Baku, Azerbaijan on 3-5
December.
The event is organized by the Ministry of Communications and
Information Technologies (MoCIT) of the Republic of
Azerbaijan in cooperation with United Nations Development
Program (UNDP) Country Office in Azerbaijan, Ministry of
Economy and Industry of Azerbaijan and Civil Service
Commission under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan
with substantive assistance of UN DESA’s Division for Public
Administration and Development Management (DPADM).
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The workshop will serve as an enabling platform of the World
Summit for Information Society to enhance the knowledge of
national practitioners and professionals in the current concepts,
approaches, and practices in engaging citizens in the decisionmaking process in formulating and implementing national
development plans including the use of ICTs. It is expected that the
participants of the workshop will learn and share their experiences
and exchange best practices in e-participation including aspects of
regulatory and institutional frameworks in engaging citizens
through e-participation in public policy and service delivery.
The workshop sessions will provide opportunities for participants
to interact with speakers and resource persons in order to develop
new capacities for designing and implementing successful eparticipation strategies and policies for a more transparent,
accountable and efficient government and citizen engagement and
participation, as well as to create and strengthen networks of
stakeholders and practitioners.
Approximately 40 government officials and professionals at mid to
senior levels are expected to participate (e.g. advisors to
government chief executives at national and regional levels;
heads/deputy heads of departments/units, chief specialists/officers,
etc.) representing Ministry of Communications and Information
Technologies (MoCIT) of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ministry of
Economy and Industry of Azerbaijan and Civil Service
Commission under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
For more information: UN DESA’s Division for Public
Administration and Development Management (DPADM)
Supporting national statistical
systems
Seminars on Developing
Programmes for the
Implementation of the
System of National
Accounts 2008 (2008
SNA) and Supporting
Statistics and the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting
2012 (2012 SEEA) and Supporting Statistics in Africa will be held
in Kampala, Uganda on 9-13 December.
The seminars are organized by UN DESA’s Statistics Division, in
collaboration with the United Nations Economic Commission for
Africa, African Development Bank, East Africa Community,
the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA),
the Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS),
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP), the World Bank and the
Uganda Bureau.
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
The SNA seminar is organized to assist participating African
countries with initiating the formulation of a national strategy
and implementation programme for the 2008 SNA and
supporting socio-economic statistics with the objective of
strengthening the national statistical system in support of
improved policy making. It is expected that this initiative will
lead to a multi-year statistical programme helping countries to
change over to the 2008 SNA with a view to producing timely
comparable national accounts statistics and short-term economic
indicators which fully meets the user needs as well as complies
with the international standards.
The objective of the SEEA seminar is to assist the participating
African countries with developing an implementation strategy
for the SEEA Central Framework on the basis of policy
priorities and statistical development as well as to develop a subregional implementation strategy. It is expected that this
initiative will lead to a multi-year statistical programme assisting
countries in the adoption of the SEEA 2012 Central Framework
with a view to produce timely comparable economic and
environmental statistics based on selected environmentaleconomic accounts and environmental-economic indicators
which fully meets the user needs as well as complies with the
international standards.
The seminars brings together senior managers from national
statistical offices and senior representatives from government
agencies using economic and environmental information for
policy setting from countries in Africa to discuss the
development of a national implementation strategy for the 2008
SNA and the SEEA 2012 Central Framework. The aim is also to
share experiences among countries in the region and facilitate
cooperation amongst the neighbouring countries as well as
north-south and triangular cooperation in support of the SNA
and SEEA implementation strategy in Africa.
For more information:
UN DESA’s Statistics Division
Strengthening public sector human
resource management
A capacity building
workshop on “Innovation
and Performance
Evaluation in Africa’s
Public Service: The Role
of Human Resource
Managers” will be
organized in Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia, on 11-
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December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
13 December.
The event is arranged by UN DESA in partnership with the Africa
Public Sector Human Resource Managers’ Network (APSHRMnet) and the United Nations Economic Commission for
Africa.
The main objective of the workshop is to exchange ideas and best
practices and explore strategies for strengthening the role of human
resource managers in promoting innovation and performance
evaluation of the public service with the aim of building the
capacity of the public service in Africa for efficient public service
delivery.
Innovation is not an exclusive phenomenon that is happening only
in the private sector. The public sector has also demonstrated
capability to innovate in order to improve delivering public
services. To validate that, one has just to look at the increasing rate
of nominations to the United Nations Public Service Award each
year which has gone up from 81 in 2003 to 601 in 2013.
However, most innovative practices so far nominated focus
on improving service delivery in the areas including health,
education and gender equality. Very few addresses the
improvement of performance of the human resources that are
delivering the services. While it is critical that the services
delivered become better, it is also important that the capacities for
innovation especially in terms of human resources are supported
and improved.
For more information:
“Innovation and Performance Evaluation in Africa’s Public
Service: The Role of Human Resource Managers”
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
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Publications and Websites
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
National Accounts Statistics: Main Aggregates and Detailed
Tables, 2012, Parts I, II, III, IV and V,
ST/ESA/STAT/SER.X/50
Technical reports
Pre-release of the World Economic Situation and Prospects
(WESP) 2013
The first chapter on global economic outlook of the WESP 2013
will be launched on 12 December at 11 am in New York. A joint
product of UN DESA, UNCTAD and the five United Nations
regional commissions, this publication provides an overview of
recent global economic performance and short-term prospects for
the world economy and of some key global economic policy and
development issues. One of its purposes is to serve as a point of
reference for discussions on economic, social and related issues
taking place in various United Nations entities during the year.
•
More information
The first National Accounts yearbook appeared in 1958 and
contained data for 70 countries and territories. The National
Accounts Statistics: Main Aggregates and Detailed Tables, 2012
(MADT 2012) contains 2001-2012 data for 204 countries and
territories. The estimates for each country or area are presented
in separate chapters, containing statistics on national accounts
aggregates and detailed variables such as gross domestic
product, national income, saving, household and government
consumption expenditure, gross capital formation, exports and
imports, value added, compensation of employees, operating
surplus, etc.
Data are reproduced as they are reported by the countries in their
respective national currencies. The MADT dataset has been
updated with 2012 data on the UNdata Portal at:
http://data.un.org/Explorer.aspx?d=SNA.
•
Statistical compilations
Monthly Bulletin of Statistics and MBS Online
The Monthly Bulletin of Statistics presents
current economic and social statistics for more
than 200 countries and territories of the
world. It contains over 50 tables of monthly
and/or bimonthly, quarterly and annual data on
a variety of subjects illustrating important
economic trends and developments, including
population, prices, employment and earnings,
energy, manufacturing, transport, construction,
international merchandise trade and finance.
More information
National Accounts Statistics: Analysis of Main Aggregates,
2012
ST/ESA/STAT/Ser.X/51
The National Accounts Statistics: Analysis of Main Aggregates,
2012 contains in the form of analytical tables a summary of the
principal national accounting aggregates based on official
national accounts data for more than 200 countries and areas of
the world for the years 1970 to 2012. It also contains a section
on the estimation methods used for compiling the data. It is
prepared by UN DESA’s Statistics Division with the generous
co-operation of national statistical offices and serves as a
valuable source of information on the economic situation of
countries and areas. The publication will be available in
December 2013.
Vol. LXVII – No. 10, October 2013
In addition to the regular recurrent monthly tables, this issue
includes the quarterly and bimonthly tables: Retail price indices
relating to living expenditures of United Nations officials; Civil
aviation traffic: passenger-km and cargo net ton-km; Total exports
and imports by countries or areas: volume, unit value, terms of
trade and purchasing power of exports, in US dollars.
•
More information
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
The tables of the publication include analysis of data on gross
domestic product (GDP) by different structural components. The
types of analysis presented are classified into the four major
categories listed below:
•
•
•
Analysis of the level of total and per capita GDP
Analysis of the percentage shares of GDP by type of
expenditure and gross value added by kind of economic
activity
Analysis of economic development expressed in term
of real growth of GDP and its components by type of
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•
expenditure and gross value added by kind of economic
activity
Analysis of price development reflected by implicit price
deflators of GDP
To download the time-series data:
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/snaama/selQuick.asp
http://data.un.org/Explorer.aspx?d=SNAAMA
The Demographic Yearbook (DYB) Special Issue on
Household Characteristics
The Tabulations of the DYB Special issue on Household
Characteristics has been published. The tabulations contain the
available household characteristics data reported to DESA’s
Statistics Division for the Population Censuses conducted
worldwide during the 2000 and 2010 rounds of censuses. In
particular, the datasets present information on: (i) population by
type of living quarters, by relation to the reference person, by age
and sex; (ii) on households by different characteristics such as age,
sex and marital status of reference person, by size and by type of
household.
•
More information
The Demographic Yearbook 2012 (DYB 2012)
The DYB 2012 is the sixty-third issue in a series published by the
United Nations since 1948. It contains tables on a wide range of
demographic statistics, including a world summary of selected
demographic statistics, statistics on the size, distribution and trends
in national populations, fertility, foetal mortality, infant and
maternal mortality, general mortality, nuptiality and divorce. Data
are shown by urban/rural residence, as available. In addition, the
volume provides Technical Notes, a synoptic table, a historical
index and a listing of the issues of the Demographic Yearbook
published to date. This issue of Demographic Yearbook contains
data as available including the reference year 2012.
•
December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
•
Read full issue
Youth Flash Newsletter
Published by UN DESA’s Division for Social Policy and
Development Focal Point on Youth, the October issue is
available online with a feature article entitled “Youth
partnerships and the United Nations: Reflections on the UN
Inter-Agency Network on Youth Development Open Meeting
with Youth”. The newsletter is prepared with input from UN
offices, agencies, and from youth organizations around the
world.
•
Read full issue
DESA NGO News
The November issue published by UN DESA’s NGO Branch is
available online and features among other things an article on
how the UN is linking private, public partnerships to create
climate change solutions. The newsletter provides the most upto-date information on news and upcoming events of interest to
civil society at UN headquarters in New York, Geneva and
elsewhere.
•
Read full issue
Discussion papers
Monthly Briefing on the World Economic Situation and
Prospects No. 60
Published by DESA’s Development Policy and Analysis
Division, the November issue states that the global
manufacturing production has improved, the economic recovery
is strengthening in developed economies, and the public fiscal
stimulus programmes have been a determinant factor in
economic growth in many developing countries.
More information
•
To download
Outreach material
Sustainable Development in Action – Issue 10, Volume 1
Published by UN DESA’s Division for Sustainable Development,
the latest issue highlights among others, the Open Working Group
on Sustainable Development Goals. The newsletter aims to
highlight the work carried out by Member States, the UN Major
Groups and other relevant stakeholders in implementing
sustainable development and leading the way to the Future We
Want.
DESA News | Newsletter of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs
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December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
Comings and Goings
Goings
Ms. Jan McAlpine, Director of the United
Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF), retired in
November 2013. During her tenure as
Director, she launched the innovative
Facilitative Process, which provides enhanced
capacity development for developing countries
to mobilize forest financing, and developed a
fundraising strategy which generated over $18
million by developing a bottom-up, technical and expert program
of work for UNFF.
Thilo Maier, Information Systems Officer, Statistics Division
Leah McDavid, Information Technology Assistant, Financing
for Development Office
LienKim Nguyen, Editorial Assistant, Population Division
Richard Roehrl, Senior Economic Affairs Officer, Division for
Sustainable Development
Throughout her 35-year career, she has worked on strategic policy
and planning related to environment, trade, finance and social
issues at the United Nations, in Government, including the Office
of the President of the United States and in multilateral not-forprofits and academic institutions. Ms. McAlpine previously served
as Senior Negotiator and Advisor for Forests for the United States
Department of State, as well as the Chairman of the International
Tropical Timber Council and is currently a member of the World
Future Council.
Ms. McAlpine has been instrumental in conceiving and
implementing international initiatives such as the Congo Basin
Forest Partnership, the Liberia Forest Initiative and most recently
Rwanda’s Forest and Landscape Restoration initiative. Her efforts
resulted in a $9.5 million grant from the Global Environment
Facility (GEF) for the Rwanda project ($63 million in total
funding) in 2012. She has been honored by various academic
institutions including the Swedish Royal Academy and the German
Society of Foresters.
Jan McAlpine grew up in Central and Southern Africa, in Rwanda,
Burundi, Congo, Kenya and South Africa.
See the DESA News interview with Ms. McAlpine that she gave
ahead of the UN Forum on Forest 10 that took place on 8-19 April
2013 in Istanbul.
Comings
The following staff members were promoted in November:
Kebebush Welkema, Research Assistant, Division for Sustainable
Development
Lydia Debbie Gatan, Staff Assistant, Division for Public
Administration and Development Management
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December 2013, Vol. 17, No. 12
Calendar
December
International Day of Persons with Disabilities
3 December
http://www.un.org/disabilities/index.asp
Second session of the Intergovernmental Committee of Experts
on Sustainable Development Financing
2-6 December, New York
http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?menu=1558
“Expert Group Meeting for the Global Sustainable
Development Report 2013 – Engaging National
Assessments”
12-13 December, Beijing
http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view&typ
e=13&nr=501&menu=1621
National Capacity Building Workshop on Developing Capacity
for e-Participation
3-5 December, Baku, Azerbaijan
International Workshop on e-Government Best Practices
3-5 December, Amman, Jordan
http://www.unpan.org/DPADM/tabid/420/Default.aspx
Global Conference on Rural Energy Access
4-6 December, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view&nr=4
89&type=13&menu=1634
Seminars on Developing Programmes for the Implementation
of the System of National Accounts
9-13 December , Kampala, Uganda
Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals,
Sixth session
9-13 December, New York
http://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view&type=
13&nr=490&menu=1476
A capacity building workshop on “Innovation and
Performance Evaluation in Africa’s Public Service: The Role
of Human Resource Managers”
11-13 December, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
DESA News is an insider's look at the United Nations in the area of economic and
social development policy. The newsletter is produced by the Communications and
Information Management Service of the United Nations Department of Economic and
Social Affairs in collaboration with DESA Divisions. DESA News is issued every
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